Grace of The Sun
by GreenHuntress
Summary: Amaterasu grants Kurow life again, and Chibi and all of his friends get one more adventure in Nippon. Something I've been working on the side before my sergeantfrog/Nichijou crossover thingy with rainbowkittyblossomwings
1. The Celestial Plain

Chibiterasu was chasing a butterfly down the rolling hills of the Celestial plain. The butterfly fluttered about harmlessly just out of reach every time Chibi leapt up to reach it.

"Hey, where ya going?" He laughed as he chased it through the long grass. He ran after the insect in the form of the wolf. It was the same wolf form he'd borrowed from his mother when he'd last visited Nippon. His white fur danced in the wind as his small black eyes focused on the bug. It landed on a tall blade of grass, and Chibi pounced down to grab it. As he landed, he took the form of a creature that could more easily hold such a bug. When he cupped his hands around the butterfly, the tip of his tail turned into a big wooden brush that hung at his side. His white fur and red markings had transformed into a beautiful kimono that would have easily put all others to shame, and his short white hair was tipped with black, but the tattoos on his face remained unchanged. Slowly, he opened his palms, and held the tiny blue and green creature to his face. The butterfly crawled about on his palm without any fear of him. Chibi laughed, in a voice that still resembled a puppy.

"Hey, pup! I hope you're not picking on that bug!" Came a tiny, irritated voice. Chibi's eyes glowed as he let the bug fly away, and spun around to see the small Celestial Envoy.

"Issun!" He barked happily. Chibi bent down to try and catch him as well, but the green poncle was much too quick.

"Hey! Don't run all over the place like that! You'll squash me!" He yelled. Chibi was unfazed by the Poncles warning, and merely stopped his pursuing for a moment to hear him out. Issun let out an agitated sigh before speaking again.

"That's better. You're too excitable, Chibi. You need to learn to be more like an adult."

"Why? Mommy says I'm perfectly mature for my age." He retorted happily, finding a cricket to entertain him instead. The fact Chibi was ignoring him, didn't go unnoticed by Issun.

"Well, yeah. I mean, coming from Ammy, that isn't saying much. I swear that darn wolf gets more childish every day." The fact that he'd just insulted his mother, didn't seem to bother the boy. He knew the poncle didn't mean harm. "In fact…" Issun went on. "That's why I'm here." That made Chibi look directly at him for the first time. "Your mom wants to talk to you at the palace." He informed. Chibi wondered why she hadn't simply come here. She didn't have such important duties at the palace that outweighed even him. None the less, Chibi headed off to the palace, with the curious green bug-creature trailing behind.

The palace was made nearly entirely of gold on the outside, so to glimmer off the light of the sun brilliantly. The only parts not made of gold were made from the finest and strongest wood. A figure of each brush god was carved and painted along the palace walls. The palace glowed so lovely, it might have been the sun. After all, it was Amaterasu's own home. The guards greeted Chibi as he neared the palace. Chibi gave a friendly 'hello' in return to all who greeted him. With a wide smile on his face, he walked through the giant double doors that were opened for him. Inside, there were three long staircases that lead upward almost endlessly. Many other gods and spirits, who were visiting, or on account of business crowded the main hall. Chibi wasn't intimidated by the vast amount of strangers at all. Chibi was too friendly to be frightened of strangers at all. Besides, no one bad would visit Mommy. Without hesitation, he headed up the stairs, with the green poncle hopping alongside him, until he grew tired, and rode on Chibi's nose to rest the remaining distance up. Finally, they reached a set of golden double doors. He knew he was welcome, but knocked on the hard door all the same. After a moment, the door was opened. The woman who swung open the door was also dressed in a kimono. However, hers was by far a dozen times as stunning. It was also sized and shaped to fit her specifically, so no one else could ever hope to wear it. Her long white hair fell perfectly down her shoulders and reached her upper back. And her face was unmistakably the most beautiful in all the Celestial plain.

"Mommy!" Chibi said with more joy than all his laughter and happiness throughout the day. He flung his arms around the familiar goddess, and buried his boyish face in the belly of her kimono. Amaterasu embraced her son with the same level of affection.

"Hey, squirt. You act like you haven't seen her in years!" Issun shouted, effectively interrupting the two.

"Let them have their moment, my little bouncing friend." Came a flamboyant French voice from within the room.

"Waka? What are you doing here?" He demanded. The Man of the lunar tribe frowned at Issun, and returned the question.

"I should be asking you the same. Of all of us, this matter has the least to do with you." Waka informed. For a moment, Issun ceased his irritated yelling at the half baked prophet. as Ammy and her son finished their embrace. She brushed a strand of hair away from the boy's face, Amaterasu finished for him, speaking almost directly to Chibi, as Waka already knew, and Issun was only eavesdropping by that point.

"Waka and I have been discussing it for a long time now, and have recently come to a decision." She paused, either for dramatic effect, of to ensure her son was listening. He was. She continued. "You remember, when long ago, you visited Nippon and befriended some humans?" Chibi smiled and nodded, happily recalling his adventures. "Well, how would you like to go back to Nippon?" Chibi couldn't believe his ears. His eyes gleamed and he began bouncing up and down with joy.

"Oh, mama. Do you mean it? Can I really go back?" He asked, unable to believe it could be so easy.

"Theres more." She said, a bit more serious. Chibi settled down and looked up at his mother curiously. Amaterasu looked over at Waka, who nodded, and headed out of the room, taking an indignant Issun with him. When it was more quiet, Ammy spoke normally to her son.

"Chibi, of course you remember Kurow, right?" Chibi's ears suddenly twitched at the sound of the name. But he remained quiet, to hear her out.

"You must understand, I am a goddess, but even I have my limitations. Especially with all the world losing faith in me, once again. But I looked down from the heavens and witnessed the brave boy die. It's taken me years to be willing to take the risk, but Waka and I decided to work together to defy what's been done." The boy was still, and continued to stare up at his mother in disbelief. "There's only a slim chance, but we are going to try to bring him back." She said. Chibi didn't know what to say, he was beyond happy to hear that he would be reunited with his best friend, but he knew that there was always a price for good things.

"You mean, he really might come back?" He asked, trying not to sound too hopeful. Amaterasu pet her son's short white hair, and did her best to sound positive.

"It's possible." She said. "I'll do my best, but there's no telling what might happen. Not even my own ancestors tried to revive the dead."

"But Kurow was a good boy! He made some mistakes, but he's good!" The boy protested. "He deserves another chance, doesn't he?"

"He does, but that doesn't grant him a special place in the universe. I must abide by the natural law. I will do my best, but please don't be upset if my powers are insufficient." She said. Chibi nodded, and hugged his mother tightly.

"Hey mama?"

"Yes?"

"If…It he does come back, will you send me to the human world so I can play with him again?"

Ammy smiled, petting her son's soft, scruffy, white hair again.

"Of course." She answered, and leaned down to kiss his forehead lovingly.


	2. Kurow's revival

It was night on the Celestial plain. Nearly impossible to tell however, as the sun goddess ruled over the land at all times, and therefore so did her power's of light. Amaterasu gazed out of the window on the floor of the room. In the deepest basement of her own palace, there resided a glass floor in the center of the circular room. From there, she looked down to miles of clouds below, that only served as minor disturbances in between the plain, and the human realm. The room itself was small, but somehow, it was just large enough to house a pedestal on its center. Ammy examined her work, making a 'hmmm' of mild satisfaction. It would have to do.

She spun around as she heard the giant golden doors above creaked open.

"Ah, you're here!" She said excitedly. The golden-haired Celestial took notice of a wagging tail attached to the rear of Ammy's kimono.

"What's that for?" He inquired, gesturing towards it. As if she didn't notice the thing, Ammy followed his gaze, and when she saw her tail, she spun around to grab it. It was just out of reach however, and it eluded her grasp only barely. She stopped, and tried again, and again. And after several failed attempts to catch it, Waka coughed loudly. Ammy stopped, and stood straight, scratching her head apologetically, and making her two, fuzzy, beastly ears more noticeable.

"Well, you know human form is much too difficult to maintain on earth because I need most of my energy to fend off demons? Well, even though it's much easier to use magic on the celestial plain, it's even easier in a less human form. Basically, the less magic I'm using, the better." She explained. "Also, I think it's kind of cute." She added.

"Well ma Cherie, I must agree it has its charm." He complimented. Ammy smiled back at the prophet. She put her long, cloud white hair into a ponytail as Waka descended down the spiraling stairs.

"I didn't see Chibi, where is he?" He inquired as he reached the last few steps. Ammy was still, she closed her eyes in thought and sighed.

"I… Didn't want him worrying over the whole thing, so I went ahead and sent him down to earth." She admitted, obviously already aware of the consequences for her sudden actions.

"You sent him there before we even started the revival ritual? Are you certain about your decision?" Waka asked. Ammy smiled, seemingly, she was more confident in the boy then him.

"Has it escaped your mind that Chibi too, has visited to the land of the rising sun before? He isn't anymore new to the place than I." She laughed lightly. Waka didn't seem so convinced. Although, he had reason not to be. Chibi, despite being descended of gods, was still only a child even by godly standards. And after all, Waka had stayed for more than two hundred years at that place. There was certainly no one more qualified than him to say whether it was a good idea to let Chibi venture there. Although, the boy had the spirit of his mother, and the divine power to back it up. And if Ammy wasn't worried, why should he worry?

"Now, let us begin." She said, and gestured to the pedestal. Waka knew what he had to do for the divine magic to work properly. Kurow had been a puppet, made from Waka himself. Waka was a piece of him, and vise versa. No one could bring back the dead, not even gods. But a piece of Kurow continued to live, within him. This was perhaps the only exception to that great rule of all the universe.

Waka stood at the foot of the alter, his arms outstretched. Ammy had never in her existence attempted the revival ritual. All she believed she needed though, was a prayer to confirm his sacrifice, and a single drop of blood.

"I'm sorry I have to do this." She apologized, reaching out a sympathetic hand to him. Waka held her hand and squeezed it tightly to show he wasn't afraid.

"No need to be sorry, ma Cherie. I have sacrificed much more for your noble causes." Amaterasu smiled again. Waka was indeed a loyal servant to the gods. But mostly, to her. Amaterasu stood tall, her shining white kimono fluttering despite the absence of wind.

"Oh great Amaterasu. Origin of all that is good, and mother to us all. Accept my flesh to use at your discretion, and my will that is yours. I relinquish my blood to you." As he spoke, she wielded an object, glowing in her hands. She spun it around her fingers twice before it solidified in her hands, appearing as no more than a brush. Waka deserved more than a simple knife, to draw his blood. The brush was tipped with the blackest of inks, without having been dipped in a real ink pot its entire existence.

In one fast strike, she drew a solid line across waka's center. He flinched at the sheer force of the attack. Her powers had only grown in strength since she came to the celestial plain. Though the force of it would have cut a powerful demon clean in half, Waka was much more powerful than any regular demon was. That fact, plus the one that Ammy wasn't trying to harm him apart from drawing a little blood, all added to why he was otherwise unscathed as a clean red drop ran down his stomach. Ammy knew he was ok, but ran to his side immediately all the same.

"Waka!"She cried, trying to hold him up, as his legs quivered from the shock.

"I'm fine, ma Cherie." He said, standing up on his own to reassure her. Ammy tried to be relieved, but it was hard, while she knew that he was in pain. Still, he was right. He was in pain, but it was only temporary. Ammy reluctantly left his side to scoop up some of the blood into her hands. She walked up to the center of the alter, and let the droplets fall. The blood never reached the ground, however. It floated in the air, just a few feet above the ground. While it was suspended, Amaterasu stood before it, her hands pressed together to help focus her power.

A great light began to shine around it. It glowed brighter as Amaterasu started sweating. It took much of her strength to bring forth the light. Because this was no ordinary light, like the kind she could summon easily. This light was pure, and was the essence of all creation. It was life. After a sudden burst of power, she lost the strength to stand and fell to the floor, in weakness. After a moment, she opened her eyes, and found Waka standing over her, holding out a hand. She gladly took it, and let him help her stand up again. Her kimono had hardly been stained by her fall to the floor.

Both their heads turned to face the outcome of their work. Ammy stepped toward it, hesitantly. She had no experience to tell her if she'd preformed the ritual incorrectly, or if the consequences of such could summon a demon. But she approached the apparition, whether it was an imposter or not. Cautiously, she spoke to the light, still forming into a shape.

"Kurow?" She asked. As she spoke his name, the light solidified fully into shape, and formed the blond boy both Ammy and Waka had imagined. He had colorful clothes, that had been created with him thanks to the memory that lived within the sun goddess. Then suddenly, he was there completely. He was an exact replica of the brave young boy who sacrificed himself for the defeat of a demon years ago. But it seemed even he had little strength. He immediately fell to the ground, and hit the stone alter hard. Ammy rushed to his side. She put her hand on his golden hair to make sure he was real, before turning to Waka.

Waka kneeled down and looked at the exhausted child while radiating a sense of relief, and inner fulfillment. Then, as the two looked to one another, with astonishment and surprise, the boy opened his eyes. Kurow looked up at Amaterasu with the tired eyes of one who'd woken from the very deepest of sleeps.

"The…Sun…" He mumbled, as he gazed into the kind, powerful eyes of the great and noble Amaterasu. Ammy had never personally met the boy before, but he seemed so similar to Waka.

"I'll take him." Waka offered, reaching for the child, and cradling him in his arms. Kurows arms fell limply down, as he was lifted up. Ammy stood up as well. She followed Waka back up the stairs, and took him to a safe place to rest. Most people spent their lives in search of the Celestial Plain, this boy would begin here.

There was much to do with him still. Ammy wanted to send this one back to earth, so he could finish his childhood where he left off, but she had to be sure that Kurow could return in one piece. She had plenty of time. Days passed slower on the Celestial Plain than on earth.

By celestial standards, it was a few days later that far below, on the grass atop the hill of Kamaki village, a white haired boy awoke in the early morning.


	3. Arival at Nippon

Chibi opened his eyes and saw darkness. He felt the soft grass of earth on his cheek, and not the grass of the Celestial Plain.

"Mommy?" He asked, suddenly panicked. He sat up and in the light of early morning saw he was on the hill of Kamaki village. It wasn't like last time he came. Not the place itself, but the situation. He could tell in a second that Kurow wasn't here, and that had been the purpose for his appearance here. Chibi was the son of the sun goddess and in turn, of the origin of all life on earth itself. But alas, even he did not fully understand his mother's ways. Either she had sent Chibi here so he wouldn't know that she'd failed her resurrection, or she had placed Kurow somewhere far away where Chibi would have to find him.

Little Chibi sighed.

"Mom… That's not fair. You need to tell me if you were successful or not." He whined. It wasn't fun for him to not know what she was up to. Just then, he realized something odd. He'd just spoken aloud in Japanese a few seconds ago. Chibi stood up quickly and looked down at his hands.

"I'm not a wolf!" He exclaimed loudly. Did Amaterasu forget to make him a wolf? Or maybe she just wanted a change in pace, as both she and Chibi came to Japan as wolves, and it was getting a bit bland. He looked up at the sky with a grimace.

"I liked being a puppy…" He complained. Well, at least now people could understand him. Chibi had always gotten annoyed that no one could understand what he was trying to say last time. But, he could tell he was going to miss being petted, and rubbed, and being treated like a normal dog. That reminded him of something. Chibi ran down the hill, startling many small sparrows on his way. At the bottom, he could see Sakuya's tree in the distance, and ran toward it. He could see her many flowers in bloom, that reassured him that she was healthy. And since her roots spread throughout Nippon, that most likely meant that Nippon was also demon free. That at the very least was good.

"Sakuya!" He yelled. The tree was silent. Was something wrong? Chibi was panting from all that running. It was much harder to get around in human form. Then he remembered something he probably should have a while ago. He held up his hand, as if to receive something. As he willed it, a bright object began to appear in his hand. It got brighter until it took physical form, as a bamboo brush. He'd nearly forgotten about it.

It appeared with just enough ink on the tip. Being a magical brush, it didn't require any real ink to use. The ink on the brush was created with Chibi's own godly power. The ink appeared according to Chibi's power. Although the brush was far weaker than his mother's, it was still a powerful weapon, and tool that no mortal could wield. He held it up to the sky, and smeared a circle of ink into mid air. The circle of ink suspended in mid air began to shine, and after a moment it became an orb of glowing red sunlight.

Raising the sun was usually Amaterau's job back home, but down on earth Chibi could easily direct the sun at his will. In a moment, the sky was lit up with the rays of sun streaming from the ink inspired apparition. However, the sun Chibi created was a bit less impressive than his mother's. Chibi was still young and inexperienced after all.

The energy of the new sun seemed to awaken the cherry tree spirit. If Chibi still had a tail, it would have been wagging fiercely with joy. A cool wind blew through the cherry blossoms, and the petals circled around until the form of a beautiful woman in a flowing colorful gown appeared.

"Sakuya!" He shouted, running toward the tree spirit. He hadn't seen her in years, but she still hadn't seemed to age at all. He buried his face in the belly of her dress, and hugged her as tightly as he could. After all this time, he still remembered how nice the lady was.

"Welcome back, Chibiterasu." She said in a pleasant voice. She placed a hand atop his soft white head and started petting it the same way she did last time when he was a puppy. "What brings you here?" She asked, looking down at the boy.

"Well…I'm not really sure. Mommy sent me back here to find my friends again, but apparently there's not any horrible danger. Is there a demon lord or something I should know about?" Chibi asked, in the sweet voice of a twelve year old.

"No. At least, not that I'm aware." She answered. Normally, it would have been strange for such a conversation to take place while both characters take each other so seriously. But, in this case Sakuya was a loyal servant of Amaterasu, and therefore her son as well. Chibi stepped back and looked up at her, still smiling happily.

"So…Has Kuni returned yet?" He asked hopefully. Sakuya frowned, and averted her eyes. Chibi did the same.

"I'm sorry Chibiterasu. We haven't heard from him since he left three years ago." She told him.

"Three years?" He confirmed. "I've been gone for three years?" Sakuya nodded.

"That's not so long, is it?" She said, trying to help him feel better. Chibi's frown became more pronounced. Sakuya kneeled down and looked Chibi directly in the eyes. "Chibiterasu, just because we haven't seen him doesn't mean you can't find him. I only wish I could accompany you." She said.

"Too bad you're stuck here. But at least you look after the people of Kamaki village. Mom really appreciates it." Sakuya smiled again, and petted Chibi's head.

"Thank you, I'm glad to hear that." Then, Sakuya stood up, and began to disappear once more.

"Sakuya, come back!" He cried.

"Don't be upset, Chibiterasu. Go find your friends, they'll be happy to see you. Besides, you may return whenever you please." She comforted. And then, she became nothing more than cherry blossoms in the wind that blew away as the echo of her voice faded. Chibi was sad to see her go, but the sadness was soon replaced by excitement with the knowledge that he had many more old faces to see. He waved goodbye to the sacred tree, and ran back down the hill toward the houses in the village.

The first thing he noticed was Mushi and his mama out by their turnip fields. Hayabusa sat obediently away from the turnips, but Chibi knew well enough to tell that the dog wasn't innocent to the crime of digging them up for sport. Chibi walked passed them, skipping happily as he headed off to the house at the far end of the village, closest to the shop.

"Who's that?" Mushi asked his mama, pointing at Chibi. He didn't have enough patience to explain that he was actually Chibiterasu to them, so he pretended not to hear, and continued walking. As he crossed the bridge, he spied a small child playing in Susano's yard. The child looked especially young, about toddler age.

"Hey! What are you doing in Susano's yard?" Chibi demanded, though he had no authority to. Chibi picked up the child and looked around for the mother it belonged to. His search was interrupted by a shrieking woman nearby.

"What are you doing with my baby?" She yelled. Chibi sensed the danger, and gently set the kid down, and stepped back. He knew he was no match for a mother's wild instinct. But upon seeing her, his eyes lit up again.

"Kushi?" He exclaimed. The woman held her child and then looked curiously back at Chibi.

"Hey, you look kind of like snowy." She observed. Chibi nodded.

"I'm Chibi!" He smiled playfully. Kushi's eyes grew wide with disbelief. Chibi didn't care if she didn't believe it. She was still a nice lady. Ammy told him that Kushi was the first real human friend she met when she arrived in Nippon. But Chibi sensed it wouldn't be good to ask for a hug from her.

"Alright, what punk do I have to bust for annoying my wife?" Came a loud tough voice.

"Susano!" Chibi exclaimed. He was nice too. Stupid, but nice. It was soon apparent that he didn't recognize Chibi either. He also had a curious expression on his face, and looked at Chibi with mixed feelings.

"It's me, Chibiterasu!" They still looked puzzled. Chibi sighed. "Amaterasu's son." He clarified. They exchanged amazed looks.

"Pup? Is that you?" Susano asked, approaching him. Chibi nodded.

"I see you guys got another baby now. Good for you." He complimented. As if babies were things you could buy at rare novelty stores. "So how is life treating you? Any mystical demons that need defeating?" Chibi asked. Neither Susano nor Kushi answered. It seemed they were still in shock for a moment. Then, Kushi approached him, and slowly started petting his head. Convinced by the furry texture of his hair, Kushi smiled and turned to Susano with a big grin.

"It really is Snowy's pup!" She exclaimed. But she didn't stop petting him after that conclusion.

"What on earth are you doing here pup? I mean…boy?" Susano asked, getting confused over which was politically correct. Chibi could tell this was going to take a lot of explaining. But it was hard to feel irritated while Kushi was petting him.


	4. Search for Comrades

"So, why are you here?" Susano asked again, when they were all inside, and Kushi had treated Chibi to some tea. It was nice far nicer treatment then he would have gotten as a dog. Humans could be so racist sometimes. Chibi took a sip of the tea. It was bitter, not at all a tasty drink for children. But Chibi was rather determined not to show any childish characteristics among the people who knew him only as Amaterasu's son. If he ever wanted to make a name for himself, he'd have to start by drinking tea.

"I'm here to find my friends." He said, in the most adult tone he could.

"That's it?" Susano asked, sounding surprised.

"Don't question me! I'm a sun god, I think I know what I'm doing." Chibi snapped. "Anyway, I can't stay long, I must find my comrades." Kushi and Susano exchanged glances.

"You wouldn't happen to know…where Kuni is…would you?" Susano hesitated to ask. Chibi lowered his head, not wanting to look upon the disappointed looks of the two humans.

"No." He answered simply. "But, I will find him." Chibiterasu stood up abruptly.

"You're leaving now?" Kushi sounded a bit surprised.

"Yep. I'm sorry, but I really must be going. Thank you for the tea." He said, bowing politely to the couple. Before he left, Susano called out to him.

"Hey, Chibiterasu." Chibi turned around and looked back at the aging warrior.

"Please tell Kuni that his father misses him." He asked. Chibi smiled, and nodded.

"You bet!" Chibi answered enthusiastically. Chibi then hustled out of the house as quickly as he could before he felt a strong need to stay. Just thinking about Kuni made him desperate to hurry up with his search.

He headed up the road, and looked back only one to the village of Kamaki. He contemplated the long journey ahead of him. He would travel first to Ryoshima coast, to find Nanami. Originally, they first met (from Chibi's perspective) in the Agata forest. But Chibi remembered that she was a servant of Otohime, and would most likely be nearer the sea on a usual day. It was incredibly far, even with his advantage of still possessing all the celestial brush techniques, it might take a few days.

Chibi had missed the mermaid girl. Even though she gave him one of his least favorite nicknames. Chibi still felt a bit underrated when he just thought the word "Squiddy". It was _not_ the sort of name for a godly child. When he started thinking about it, he really did miss his friends. He felt lonely now. Not even Issun was around to help.

He followed the river as he contemplated how he would travel all the way to Ryoshima coast without a partner. It wouldn't be incredibly difficult, since Chibi was a human boy now, and could speak Japanese without having to pantomime everything for people to understand what he wanted. He could use that to his advantage.

"Do I know you, man?" Came a voice from afar. Chibi nearly jumped but relaxed when he saw it was just Nameless Man. Chibi was about to answer, but then he thought about what might happen if he just told everyone he was the son of the sun goddess.

"Oh, probably not. I'm just wandering around…minding my own business." He said, trying to be inconspicuous.

"It seemed to me you were looking for someone."

"Not at all! I'm just…" He struggled to find a not suspicious word for 'searching for my comrades'.

"Perhaps you should talk to Onigiri-sensei. I heard he's been all over Nippon." Nameless man sujested.

"Huh? Oh that's right! He can go all over Japan in a few seconds by traveling through his dojo's! I never did figure out how he does that…" Chibi thought aloud. He'd have to his mother about that when he got home. She knew everything.

"Thanks Nameless Man!" Chibi said as he ran off to find the martial arts teacher.

"But I have a name. It's-." But Chibi was too far away at this point to hear him. He was in much too much of a hurry to go back and hear the rest of that sentence. He rushed up the hill toward the old man's dojo. Last time he was at Nippon, it was said that the old man had left on vacation. Chibi could only hope the man was still around so he could quickly get to the coast.

The dojo was in better condition than last time. It looked like it had been renovated. He ran up to the door, but had to take a few minutes to catch his breath. It was hard being a human, and so unable to run everywhere easily. After a short break, he knocked on the door. At first there was no answer. Chibi knocked again, louder. Still no answer. He grew impatient and started pounding on the door with his fist as hard as he could. Finally an irritated elderly man opened the door.

"What do ya want?" He yelled. But when he looked at Chibi, he vaguely remembered the white wolf who came to his dojo long ago to train. Even though the one before him was obviously a human boy, he couldn't help but think of the white wolf.

"Um, are you Onigiri-sensei?" The old man squinted his eyes.

"Who's asking?"

"Ummm…Me?"

"Good enough. All right, come in." Chibi walked into the dojo with a bit of reluctance. He never really met the sensei before, but he remembered his mother telling him about the martial arts teacher.

"Um, excuse me? Can you take me to Ryoshima coast?" He asked.

"What? Don't you want to learn any fighting techniques? I should have known nobody appreciated the warrior's art anymore." He snorted.

"Well, I heard you have a dojo there that you can get to quickly. I was hoping you'd take me there."

"Are you truly that stupid? Why would I let you use my family's secret passage for yourself?"

"Well, Madam Fawn let my mother use her secret passage to the coast all the time, but I'm in a hurry, I need to find my friends there. I don't have time to go to madam fawn, I'm not sure where or when Kurow will be in this world and I need all the help I can get."

"You lost me at Madam Fawn, kid. But, I'll make you a deal. If you can master this new technique I created, you can use my family's secret passage and go to Ryoshima." He offered.

"Thanks mister! I'll master this technique in no time!" Chibi bragged, pulling his sleeves back.

"Very well, small one. Let us begin." The sensei the suddenly stood up straight and after a dramatic pose, his head spun around and his elderly expression transformed into a tough scowl. Chibi was more than a bit startled by the unexpected alteration.

"Eww…" Chibi said under his breath.

"Come then, novice. I will teach you the 'Claw of The Dragon' technique if you think you can handle its sheer power." The sensei lead Chibi to the plat form in a spacious room behind the door. Onigiri stood at the far end, and Chibi waited for instruction.

"All right, I'm ready." Chibi said.

"We'll see. Now first, show me a battle stance!" He yelled. Chibi bent his knees and held his small arms in by his body. His war face however, still looked too puppy-ish. It would have been impossible for any real foe to see him as threatening. "Good enough. Now, I want you to jump into the air, and when you come down, put all of your force into a downward vertical slash."

"Okay, here I go." Chibi leapt into the air surprisingly high considering his size. But he managed to leap impressively far above the ground. As gravity caught up with him, he spun around and focused his energy into his hand. He came down, and struck the ground with a powerful attack. But his legs couldn't handle the force of the fall as easily as he thought they would, and he fell on his side shortly after. "Ow!" He barked. He didn't get up, and continued rubbing his knee to relieve the pain from it. Onigiri-sensei laughed.

"Let's try again, shall we? This time, with this dummy." A straw dummy fell onto the mat before Chibi. He stood up and prepared himself for the attack again. This time, as he jumped into the air, he tried to feel his energy travel from his feet, to his stomach, and as he fell, he forced the energy into the palm of his hand. He let out a battle shout as he focused his power, but it sounded a bit too much like a puppy's howl. He came down upon the straw figure, and sliced it in half. This time when he landed, his feet absorbed the shock of the landing well, and he hardly felt it.

"How was that?" He asked, turning toward the sensei.

"Hmmm. Good, but you have room for improvement. I'll let you use the passage now, but be warned, that trick won't be enough to protect you in a real fight."

"Thank you, sensei." Chibi bowed. Onigiri lead Chibi down the steps to the floor below the sparing stage, and beneath it, there was a pair of double doors concealing a tunnel.

"So I just follow this?" Chibi confirmed. Onigiri-sensei nodded.

"Follow it until you see the entrance to my other dojo."

"Thanks mister, I owe you one." Chibi smiled.

"Actually, the lesson does cost about six million yen, but we'll call it even."

"Yeah, I'll be sure to pay that back eventually." Chibi promised. And with that, he began his way down the dark tunnel that hopefully lead to the coast.


	5. New Friend, Old Friend

Chibi walked through the depths of the tunnel disturbed only by the echo of his own footsteps. Even though it was a secret passage, it would take a while to reach the other side. Probably hours at the very least, realistically. It was dark, and naturally he was frightened of what other things might be inside the tunnel. Although, His entire time here, he hadn't seen a single demon scroll. It was so strange.

He was probably about half way through by then, and he found himself a bit more comfortable in the darkness. He was almost at ease when he suddenly heard a startling sound. A tripping of stones within the tunnel that were far from him. His ears perked at the sound, and his heart began to quiver.

"Who's there?" He asked the shadows, trying to sound brave, through his shaky voice. There was silence, and then, there was a reply.

"You shouldn't be down here." A boy's voice said back. Chibi nearly jumped.

"Well, what are you doing here then?" Chibi retorted.

"That's different. I'm on a mission." The voice explained. It was quiet again.

"So... Are you going to the dojo?" Chibi asked.

"Don't be stupid. I'm just passing through here, like you I'm guessing."

"I wasn't sure many people knew about this tunnel."

"Well, I imagine most people don't. But I'm on my way to the northern lands."

"North?" Chibi asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Yeah, I heard it was a great place to find monsters to fight. And I also heard the old sensei had a dojo there as well. But, the only problem is that I can't find the right way there."

"Wait, are you saying that there are multiple tunnels down here?" Chibi panicked, realizing that he could be lost."

"Yep. And I don't know the way I'm going either." The mysterious boy said. They were both quiet for another few moments.

"Well, why don't we go the same way? We aren't headed to the same place, I'm looking for a friend at Ryoshima coast. But, at least if we found one exit, then the other one could know to go the other way." Chibi suggested. The other boy seemed to ponder this for a second, before agreeing.

"All right, let's try that." After that, the two held hands, so that they wouldn't be separated, and walked down the tunnel a bit more confidently.

"So, what's your name?" Chibi asked.

"I'd rather not say. After all, you could be a villain. And if that's the case, I don't want you to know about me."

"Well, okay then. I guess I won't tell you my name either." Chibi sighed. Otherwise, the walk was very quiet, and after an un-measureable amount time had passed, (due to the lack of light) they both could see a faint light in the distance.

"Great! We're almost out!"Chibi said happily. He let go of the boy's hand, and ran toward the light. He could just barely touch the top of a piece of wood covering a trapdoor above.

"We made it! Isn't that great?" Chibi turned around, but even in the dim light that escaped from the cracks in between the trap door above his head, it was impossible to see the boy. "Hey, where are you?" He called out. There was no answer. Chibi began to worry, he ran back into the darkness. He soon realized that he didn't know where to go, so he stopped running and tried to figure out where he'd gone. Before Chibi could, someone's hand clasped over his mouth and silenced him. He fought the stranger, and struggled against what felt like a very strong person holding him still.

"No one leaves the city without paying a fine first, kid. You should know better." What were they talking about? Chibi didn't leave a city. Someone else called out in the dark.

"I got the other rat. Let's get this over with and call it a day." He suggested. Somehow, Chibi managed to free his head just enough to speak clearly in the blackness.

"Let me and the boy go, now! Or you're gonna regret it!" Chibi warned. The thug holding Chibi threw him on to the hard ground, and air was knocked out of Chibi's lungs. He breathed in dirt, that was on the ground by his face, and proceeded to cough it out again. He felt a big hand grasp his hair, and pull his face above the ground.

"Or else what, boy?" The thug challenged. "Or what?" Chibi didn't want to fight a human. He only wanted to use his power to fight demons, but these bandits made the mistake of messing with an innocent boy. And Chibi didn't like that.

"Or else, you meany heads are gonna get hurt real bad." Chibi growled. The thugs laughed, and their voices echoed to sound like a chorus of evil taunts. Chibi seized advantage of their lack of attention and kicked the nearest bandit to the ground. The laughing stopped and was replaced with an angry growl. Chibi was in a serious fight, and the temptation of using his brush to end it was great. But he didn't want to kill these humans, no matter how nasty they were. He decided not to use his brush, but even for these humans, he was no match for their sheer muscle.

So, he called upon his mother's treasured weapon. He lifted his hand and the divine instrument appeared at his finger tips. It was the one Sakuya gave Amaterasu years ago in order to summon her. It was the only reflector his mother allowed him to use, the Divine Retribution. A heatless fire burned on its edges, and as soon as their faces could be seen, Chibi threw the instrument at the bandits with all his fight, sending the men toppling to the ground.

The little sun god wasn't quite strong enough to kill the men with a single strike, but it was plenty enough to knock the men off their feet and render them unconscious for a good length of time. And the boy who had been restrained by one of the men was free, and in the great light of the divine instrument, could clearly see Chibi, as well as the crimson markings on his forehead, and along the sides of his beautiful white kimono. However, Chibi didn't get a good chance to see the boy before he sent the instrument back into his weapon inventory.

"Are you all right?"Chibi asked the boy. He didn't answer, and instead, Chibi only heard his running footsteps as a reply. "Hey! What's wrong? Are you scared of me? Come back!" Chibi yelled, running after him. Chibi managed to grab hold of the boy's arm, and stop him.

"Let me go!" The boy yelled, pulling away.

"Please don't go! I haven't found any friends all day, and I don't want to lose my first one!" The little god begged. Chibi managed to pull the boy just close enough to the light of the trap door above that he could see his new friend clearly now. And when he did, he let his arms fall to his sides and he stared at the boy in disbelief. Chibi couldn't believe his eyes, and was speechless. After a moment, the boy did speak.

"Hey…Mutt."

"…Kuni?" Chibi whispered. Kuni refused to meet his gaze, and looked away awkwardly.

"It's…been a while, huh?"


	6. Mermaid girl

Chibiterasu rushed toward Kuni and hugged him as tightly as it was possible for a little boy to hug.

"Kuni! I'm glad you're alright. I was so sure that you'd be hundreds of miles away!" Chibi cried happily into Kuni's shoulder. But Kuni didn't seem as excited to see Chibi. He didn't hug back, but pat Chibi's shoulder with his free hand briefly, and then pushed him off.

"I could have handled those guys myself, you know." Kuni said, sounding more irritated to see his friend than happy.

"Well, I didn't know it was you with me in the tunnel, and you kind of didn't do anything…" Chibi tried to explain.

"Well I would have!" Kuni snapped, and turned away.

"Kuni, why are you mad at me?" Chibi asked, his eyes becoming wide as he stared up at his friend sadly. Kuni wasn't able to resist the eyes for long.

"I'm sorry, Mutt. It's just that, I wanted to complete my journey before I saw you again. So that I could be a bit more tough and strong like my father. That's all." He said, more calmly.

"Oh. I'm sorry, Kuni." Chibi apologized. "I just really wanted to see you and all my other friends again. Also, my mom says that developing strong friendships during early stages of life promote healthy lifestyles." Kuni stared at Chibi with one raised eyebrow, and before he could ask what on earth that translated to in Japanese, he shook his head and seemed to stop caring.

"Well, about your mother. See, I've been traveling all over Nippon ever since we parted ways, and I've noticed that people are starting to lose faith again. Which means, her powers, and yours are probably going to be a bit weak for a while."

"What? Again? Geez, can't we leave humans alone for five years without them all forgetting?" Chibi asked, crossing his arms and heaving a sigh.

"Yeah, you're right. Well, since you've found me now, I guess we should get going." Kuni suggested, making his way to the trap door. Chibi looked up at him.

"You'll come with me?"

"Sure, why not? You're my friend too, after all. Of course I'll help you." Chibi's eyes started to get blurry from a few forming tears of joy. He rushed over to Kuni and hugged him again. "Hey, cut it out, Mutt! You're a human, it's weird to hug people now!" Kuni said, pushing Chibi away. Chibi let go, but was still very happy.

They worked together, one atop the other's shoulders in order to get through the opening. Chibi pulled Kuni up once he was on the surface. They found themselves in the dojo, and only when Chibi walked out of the sliding door did he realize something he overlooked before.

"I can't swim." He admitted nervously. Kuni sighed. The dojo was completely surrounded by water. The edge of the mainland was still far away, and the water was far too deep to walk along to bottom.

"Well, I guess I could try to carry you across." Kuni offered. they went to the edge of the little island, and Chibi walked as far as he could, until the water was up to his neck. Then, Kuni swam over to him and helped him stay afloat above the water. It was fine at first, Chibi managed to keep his head up, and they were making their way toward the sand on the other side. However, in the middle of it, something brushed up against Kuni's feet, and he let go of Chibi for only a moment long enough for Chibi to be pulled under the water by an unknown enemy.

"Mutt!" Kuni yelled. But the god child was already sinking lower and lower into the sea. Chibi opened his eyes, within the salt of the sea which stung his eyes, and blurred his vision. But he saw a finned thing dragging him deeper. He didn't have time to fight it off with a physical attack, so he pulled his brush out, and drew a straight line across the thing. A loud slicing sound echoed in the water, and the thing let out an oddly child-like cry of pain. But Chibi didn't have time to apologize. He hurriedly swam upward, to catch a long awaited breath of air.

"Kuni!" Chibi called out to his friend.

"Chibi! Are you alright?" He asked, swimming toward him. Before Chibi could answer, whatever it was that had dragged him below, rose out of the water. Chibi and Kuni both stared up at the spout of water that erupted before them as the unknown thing showed itself.

"Squiddy! That hurt! You should be nicer!" Nanami scolded. Kuni and Chibi exchanged looks for a moment.

"Nanami!" Chibi shouted. Forgetting for a second that he couldn't swim, and rushing toward the mermaid as fast as he could, and throwing his arms over her, the same way he greeted everyone. Nanami however, remembered that he couldn't swim, and supported him up this time so he wouldn't sink. Kuni didn't look quite as pleased as Chibi.

"What was up with that greeting, huh? Were you trying to kill him?" Kuni yelled. Nanami glared at the human boy.

"I was planning on using the dry stone to make an air hole for him to breathe once we got a bit further down. I wasn't so sure I wanted to talk to my old friend around a little human." She retorted.

"Hey guys, let's not fight. I'm glad Nanami found us, and Kuni was right to be a bit worried." Chibi told them. Nanami seemed to decide then that he was right, and stopped glaring at Kuni. Kuni did the same.

"Sorry Nanami. Friends?" He asked, holding out one hand he wasn't using to stay afloat.

"…Friends." Nanami said, and shook his hand in return.

"That reminds me. How did you recognize me? Don't I look human?" Chibi asked.

"Well, I did recognize your markings. And you don't look _that_ different." She said.

"Well anyways, can you get us to land?"

"Sure." Nanami led the two back to shore, which wasn't very far away, honestly, but Chibiterasu was glad for the ride anyway. When he got on the sand, he began wringing the water out of the sleeves of his kimono.

"Thanks. It must be hard for you to help a human." Kuni thanked. Nanami shrugged.

"Well, you aren't so bad. And you're Squidy's friend." She told him.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Kuni said. Once Chibi had about finished getting the water out of his clothes, he shook the rest of it off like a dog. Kuni put his hands out in front of his face to keep from being sprayed with droplets.

"Hey Nanami, you should come with us." Chibi suggested.

"Can't." She said, waving her flipper above the water.

"Oh yeah…" Chibi said. Apparently, he'd forgotten she was a mermaid.

"But, I can probably arrange something with Otohime. She did say she'd help me out if I asked." She thought out loud.

"Great! Let's go!" Chibi said happily, about to jump right back into the water when Kuni tugged just a bit at the collar of his kimono.

"You guys don't need to come. In fact, I could talk to her right now." She reached into the sleeve on her arm, and found a pearl there. She held it in her hand, and it grew larger. She looked into its surface, and started speaking into it.

"Otohime, I would like to have feet. I'll gladly work much harder once I get back. But I need to help Chibiterasu for now." Neither Kuni nor Chibi could hear the reply, but after a pause, Nanami said, "Yes, he is Amaterasu's child. But I want to help him as a friend, not just as a believer." She said. Otohime must have accepted that. She smiled into the pearl, and put it back in the sleeve. She closed her eyes, and let her head fall back. A light shined around her tail fin, and it split into two skinny legs, and a blue skirt that matched her watery hair wrapped itself over the upper part of her legs. It must have hurt her, because she gritted her teeth together and once the transformation was complete, she let out a gasp of breath and fell over into the water. Kuni and Chibi rushed to her side.

"Are you okay, Nanami?" Kuni asked, sounding very concerned. She lifted herself up, and tried to stand. It took her four tries to manage it.

"I'm fine." She said. Chibi frowned. This would have been so much easier if he was a puppy. He could have just carried her. It would be hard to carry her for a long time while he was in human form. They started toward Sei'an City, since it was so nearby. It was probably the last place they had to go before they had everyone they could find. Manpuku only lived in the previous Nippon, more than one hundred years ago, so there was little chance of getting him to come along.

"Well, this is convenient. I mean, at least, we can all go together now." Chibi said optimistically. Although, Nanami was having so much trouble walking that Kuni had to half-carry her as they walked to the city gates.

"Sorry, I wish I'd practiced walking before." Nanami apologized.

"No problem, you'll be walking just fine in no time." Kuni told her. The sun grew dimmer as they walked up the hill from the beach and stared at the enormous citadel of Sei'an at the bottom of a valley below.


	7. New Sun, New God

Chibi turned around to see the great sun falling past western mountains in the color of fiery autumn leaves. He thought of his mommy, and whimpered just a little.

"Since its getting dark, we should probably find somewhere to stay." Kuni suggested.

"Don't look at me. I don't have money to pay for an inn." Chibi said. Nanami tripped again, but Kuni caught her just before she hit the ground. As they walked into the city, it appeared that there was some commotion going on not far from the center of the commoner's quarters. A crowed was gathered around a brightly lit and colorfully decorated stage.

Chibi's ears perked at the sound of laughter, and awe from the people, and the dramatic tone that the people on the stage spoke with. He wandered slowly away from the two, and joined the crowed to see what all the commotion was about.

"Hark, the birds in the trees sing ballads of the king's death. Is it that even the beast shall mourn the end of his reign?" An actor asked.

"And now, the queen is left to care for her daughter, along with the kingdom, alone." Another actor said. The scene changed, when suddenly, the two actors left the room simultaneously. Chibi nearly jumped when the set changed with no help from the actors. What were once houses in the background, or fields of rice, flipped over or disappeared entirely to reveal a new place. It appeared to be the interior of a fancy bedroom. Chibi stared in anticipation. Not for the play, although that was certainly entertaining. But instead, because of the fact that only one family of actors in all of Nippon could manage to do something like that with their background so easily.

Sure enough, after a few seconds, she came on to the set. She was dressed in the clothes of a noble, and her face had been painted to look white. The outfit itself was very convincing, but even more so was the girl's acting. She didn't even say anything yet, and already seemed exactly like the royal princess that she was imitating. She walked slowly and without moving her head, and could have balanced several books there. She took in a little breath, and then for a second, met eyes with Chibi. The surprise was nearly undetectable on her painted face, but Chibiterasu could see it, and smiled at the young actress.

Most people wouldn't be able to hold their cool if they saw their old friend a god, appear randomly at their performance. But, Kagu was a talented and experienced actress. She looked away from Chibi, and went on with the play as naturally as she could. Her character spoke of the death of the king, which Chibi assumed was the focus of the play, and contemplated her upcoming marriage, despite her young age. When the curtains fell, the crowed and Chibi all cheered excitedly. Then, all the actors, including Kagu and her parents returned out on the stage, to bow to the audience, and end that part of the play for the day. The crowed drifted away, and as soon as they were gone, Kuni and Nanami saw Chibi, who had apparently run off, and Kagu left the stage to run toward the little sun god.

"Chibi, what are you doing?" Kuni asked. But he was cut short when he and Nanami saw Kagu. Kagu wiped the makeup from her face, and looked at Chibi , like she wasn't sure if she was seeing things.

"Pooch? Is that you?" She asked. Chibi nodded happily, and hugged her.

"Kagu, I'm so happy to see you!" He said. Kagu looked taken aback by his clinginess, and suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"H-hey! Stop that!" She said pushing him off. Chibi didn't mind, in fact he sort of expected that behavior from her. He backed off.

"See, Mutt? I told you it's weird to hug people." He said.

"Oh, I'm sure she'd do that regardless of whether I was a puppy or not." Chibi told him.

"Speaking of which, why are you human?" Kagu asked, leaning over to examine him more closely.

"Well, mom thought it would be more interesting this way, I guess." He shrugged. Unable to explain his mother's complicated way of thinking.

"'Mom'? I don't think you should refer to the great Amaterasu like that." Kagu pointed out.

"Why not? She is my Mom."

"Well, whatever. Anyway, what are all of you guys doing here?" She asked, looking at the mermaid girl, who now was just about used to using her legs, but still required a bit of support from Kuni to stand.

"We're…Wait, What are we doing, Chibi?" Kuni inquired, suddenly everyone realized that they were basically following Chibi around without any real purpose. They all looked at Chibi, and waited for an answer.

"Oh, me? Well…I guess we're looking for Kurow, and then-." Before he could finish, everyone let out a cry of surprise.

"What? We were looking for Kurow?" Kuni asked, astonished.

"What about Akuro?" Nanami asked. "Aren't you even here to stop an evil spirit?" Chibi scratched his head, embarrassedly. Kagu was certainly surprised, but seemed like the only one who wasn't upset that Chibi didn't have a better reason.

"Quiet, guys. If Chibi says we look for Kurow, then that's what we do." Kagu said decisively. Chibi was amazed that Kagu could be so loyal to him. After all, she was the bad-tempered one in the group.

"Kagu! You do like me!" He shouted happily, hugging her again.

"Cut it out, Pooch! I'm only saying that because you're a god and all." She snapped. "Besides, it's a Miko's job to be a loyal servant of the gods." She said.

"Hey, I'd hate to break this up, but do you know a place where we can get some room and board for the night?" Kuni interrupted them. Kagu was about to answer, but something in the distance caught her eye, and she looked…Scared. Chibi followed her gaze, and saw two men dressed in black, standing by the front gate of the city. A chill shivered its way down Chibi's spine. Anything that struck fear into the fearless Kagu, was a foe to be reckoned with.

"Come with me." Kagu directed. The four headed to the playhouse, and Kagu led them into an open, back room, that was more or less empty, save the presence of a few boxes, and discarded stage props.

"Ok, what is this about?" Kuni asked.

"Who were those men?"Chibi asked, as Kagu went to lock the door.

"What men?" Nanami asked. Kagu ignored her, and Kuni.

"They're Nakamura's men." She explained.

"Who's Nakamura?" Chibi asked, turning his head slightly to one side.

"A few years ago, he appeared on the beach, after a storm, and a family of villagers took him in. Apparently, a few weeks later, he started a rumor about himself."

"What kind of rumor?" Chibi asked, sensing a great deal of tension. Kagu seemed reluctant to finish the story, but eventually sighed and recalled the rest of the information to him.

"He said… That he himself was a sun god, trapped in human form." There was a long silence, broken only when Chibi burst out laughing.

"Really? No way! No one would be that stupid, as to claim that!" Chibi was rolling on the floor, laughing hysterically, like it was the funniest thing in the world.

"How is that funny? Someone is claiming to be the sun god, when the real sun god is Amaterasu! Don't you feel angry?" Nanami asked. Chibi sat up, and finished laughing.

"Sorry, but that's just silly."

"Not to his followers. He's started his own cult as a living god, and claims that he is all powerful." Kagu said. Chibi didn't look so amused now.

"You mean people actually believe him?" Kagu nodded. Chibi lowered his head, and thought about it, unable to grasp such a cunning imposter.

"Well, that would explain why you seem to be losing mankind's faith."

"No way… I won't stand for this blasphemy!" Chibiterasu yelled, his eyes blazing with ferociously, despite his usual cuteness. And his red tattoos glowing redder. He stood up, flinging open the door and leaving before anyone could stop him.

"Mutt, wait!" Kuni yelled, running after him with everyone else. Chibi was by far, the fastest. Although his friends tried to stop him from getting hurt, he ran right up to the thugs, before they could tell him to come back.

"Hey, you!" Chibi growled, baring his teeth angrily. "You work for Nakamura, the sun god want to be, right?"

"And who are you?" They replied, holding sharp spears toward him, unsure of whether they should strike a child. Chibi held out his hand, and the long white sleeve fell back, as a round object came into the world out of nowhere, in the palm of his hand. Chibiterasu held it firmly in his hand, as it became more solid and heavy, and a red fire blazed upon its smooth edge. The men, as well as many bystanders looked at the scene with astonishment. Chibi was still mad, and didn't care if he made a scene. As he wielded the mirror, the sun setting in the distance gave one last spark of vibrant, holy light before disappearing and darkening the sky.

"I am the son of the Great Goddess Amaterasu, benevolent, powerful, and mother to you all."


	8. Departure

"No, Mutt!" Kuni shouted to him. But it was too late Chibi brought down the divine instrument with all the force he could, without killing them. The two thugs didn't have enough time to react as the little boy struck them. They were knocked back far enough that they're bodies smashed against the walls that surrounded the city. Chibi would have finished them, if it wasn't for Kuni, who pulled him back at the last second. "What is wrong with you, Chibiterasu? You've never cracked down on regular humans before!"

"Let me go, Kuni! I can't let these slanderers go around disgracing the sacred name that my mother and I both share!"

"Let them go, Pooch! They aren't worth it!" Kagu said, just catching up with the other two. Chibi looked down at the humans who worshiped a false god, and sighed, angrily. The two men were in a severe amount of pain, but it seemed they would heal in time. Chibi walked over to their side, and glared down at them.

"You go back and tell your leader that the real sun gods are very upset, and that Chibiterasu will be looking for him to settle this thing." He growled. The two men looked frightened of him, but mostly surprised that such a little boy had done so much damage. They stood up, and after a quick glance at the little sun god again, they limped out of the city. Only then, did Nanami finally catch up with the rest of them. Apparently, she was still having a hard time getting used to feet.

"Mutt, why are you so worked up?" Kuni asked, trying to calm the angry god.

"I hate being impersonated." He growled. Kuni and Kagu exchanged glances. Only a few minutes ago, Chibi had been laughing his head off at the idea anyone could pretend to be a sun god.

"Squidy, I think I know how you feel." Nanami said, sympathetically placing a hand on his shoulder. "I've never been impersonated, but I have been insulted by humans who dishonored the ocean. I felt so mad, because I couldn't ever punish them for it."

"But this is different!" Chibi argued. "They aren't just insulting me, they're insulting my mommy too!" Chibi abruptly began walking out past the city gate.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Kagu called after him.

"I've decided what I'm going to do in Nippon. I am going to bring down this Nakamura jerk, and show him the power of a real god!"

"That isn't what I meant!" Kagu protested. "I meant, where do you think you're going without us?" Chibi looked at them with a surprised and curious expression.

"You actually want to come?" He asked.

"'Course we do, mutt. We're still your friends, you know." Kuni answered. Chibi smiled at his friends. He really could count on them for anything.

"You guys… Really are great." Chibi told them. "Come on! Let's go on another adventure!" He proclaimed excitedly, and pointed of into the distance to the setting sun. Chibi had no evidence to support it, but he felt that Amaterasu was watching him, from the celestial plain. He felt such pride knowing that even though he was still only a child, that his mother trusted him enough to let him have friends on earth.

"Alright, let's go!" Kuni yelled.

"I think I can walk on my own now." Nanami informed them, before falling over.

On the celestial plain, Ammy found herself grinning as she gazed through the underside of her divine mirror. The red flames along its edges were soft against her hands, and not hot. She saw her son's face smiling in the mirror. She set the mirror down on the grass after kissing the face on the mirror. She then entertained herself by growing a field of flowers around herself with the brush. Not impressively entertaining, because the flowers disappeared after a few moments. But in the short time they existed, they brought her joy.

"Bonjour, ma Cherie." Came waka's voice as he approached the goddess. A small boy walked beside him, nervous, but not frightened of the god before him. Ammy smiled at the boy.

"Hello, Kurow." She greeted. The boy was dressed in similar clothes to Waka. It made sense, since they were both from the same tribe. In fact, Kurow was an incarnation of Waka, in a way. Only, Kurow had more charm contained inside of his small, youthful body, whereas Waka was slightly more mellow about his charisma.

"Hello, Amaterasu." He answered politely, not meeting Amaterasu's divine gaze, at first.

"I'm glad you healed well. How are you feeling?" She asked.

"I feel fine. But this dude keeps telling me not to strain myself." He said pointing to Waka. Waka and Ammy both responded with laughter.

"How about your memories? Do you recall what happened in Nippon?" She asked. Kurow scratched his head nervously.

"Well, I remember my friends of course. Your son, Chibi, and all the others. But… I feel like I forgot something important." He said. Ammy and Waka exchanged glances. Ammy stood up, and kneeled down in front of the boy.

"Kurow, I'm going to send you back to earth with your friends. You need to finish living your life. But before I send you there, you need to know something." She said. Amaterasu Kurow had never been more surprised than when Ammy told him something he never would have guessed on his own. It took about ten minutes for her to explain it all to him. He just barely kept up with the conversation.

"When you go down to earth, I want to tell Chibi, ok?" Ammy requested. Kurow nodded, after collecting his senses. He could hardly believe what she told him.

"Yeah, I'll let him know." He agreed. Ammy smiled once again, and wrapped her arms around the boy, wrinkling her beautiful kimono. The small boy shed a few tears then. And as Ammy also started to cry, Waka joined in the embrace. But, they weren't sad tears. In fact, Ammy was relieved to finally have the untold secret off of her chest.

Chibi sneezed and wiped his nose with the sleeve of his white kimono.

"I don't think you should do that. It looks really expensive." Kuni told him.

"What do you mean?" Chibi asked, looking back at Kuni with a curious expression.

"Well, I know I couldn't afford a kimono like that if I saved my money up for three generations." He said, looking at the intricate design of the red patterns on the purest of white silk of the kimono, imagining the price any human would pay for such a beautiful thing. Chibi still didn't seem to understand.

"My mommy made it for me, so I guess I don't know. If I get it messy, my mom can just make another." He said dismissively.

"Are you sure?" Nanami asked, also examining the kimono from where she sat, beside Kuni. "I don't mean to question Amaterasu's power, but that looks like difficult sewing, even for a god. After all, she's a sun god, not a god of sewing."

"I don't know what you guys mean. Mom finished this for me an hour after I asked for it." The shock on Kuni and Nanami's faces was clear, as their jaws hung open in disbelief. Before they could say anything, Kagu walked back to them from the theatre house, and to the newly blooming cherry tree they were sitting around.

"Well, mom and dad are a bit worried, but I convinced them to let me come." She smiled until she saw the two still staring at Chibi's kimono with incredulity.

"Hello, Kagu. That's good to hear, let's get going!" Chibi grinned, standing up and getting ready to head out.

"Um, what's with them?" She asked, indicating the two motionless kids who couldn't believe Ammy had made such a fine kimono in the time a professional could only dream of making something half as good.

"I don't know. Anyway, we should head out before it gets too dark." He suggested. Finally, they both snapped out of it, and all four of them headed out of the city boundaries. Chibi skipped happily down the trail, following his instincts that he was sure would lead him down the path of his destiny.


	9. Star Gazing

Chibi and his companions had started traveling that same night. There wasn't really any reason to be in a hurry, but all of them were excited to be adventuring together again. It wasn't until many hours into the night that the children found themselves much too tired to walk further.

"I'll go find firewood." Kuni announced, as the two girls quickly found softer places on the ground to sleep on. Nanami was mostly tired because of her internal clock, that didn't allow her to stay up so late, and Kagu was tired because Nanami's legs had given up after the first ten minutes of walking, and she had offered to carry her. Chibi would have offered to carry Nanami instead, but Kagu had insisted. Personally, Chibi was glad. He didn't think his human body would be as good at carrying people as he was before as a wolf puppy.

"Don't bother." Chibi said, before Kuni could wander too far. "I can make a fire using only my celestial brush." He bragged.

"Are you sure, Pooch?" Kagu asked, having just settled herself on the grass to rest. Chibi nodded. Wordlessly, he pulled the brush out his pouch, and drew a dot on the ground. Immediately, a tree sprung to life there. Chibi quickly power slashed the tree into many sections, and fresh wood fell to the ground. After that, all he had to do was use inferno. He was about to draw the incantation, when the last of his ink was used up. His naturally beautiful kimono suddenly turned a bland shade of white and light grey. The tattoos on his face also disappeared, and all trace of the crimson marks were gone.

"Mutt? What happened?!" Kuni asked. Chibi lowered his head, and with embarrassment answered,

"I ran out of ink…" He suddenly looked upset, and crossed his arms, sitting down on a mossy rock behind him.

"Can't you get more ink?" Kuni asked. Chibi quickly swept the area with a glance. After he'd saved Nippon from evil, there were a lot fewer demon scrolls. And the forest, despite being teaming with life, held few resources for suitable ink.

"No, not now at least. I wish I was more like my mom, and I could just collect more ink after a period of time…"

"It's okay, I can try to make fire." Kagu offered. She picked up one of the several pieces of wood and worked an incantation. After applying a prayer slip, the wood caught on fire, as if by magic.

"You really are improving."Nanami complimented the human girl.

"Yeah, I almost forgot that you've been training as a miko." Kuni said, embarrassed that he'd forgotten something so important. Kagu smiled as she built the fire into a place everyone could get warmth from it.

"Thanks, but I've still got quite a way to go before I'm as good as priestess Rao was."

"Priestess Rao? Who's that?" Kuni asked.

"My mommy knew priestess Rao! Mom was the one who banished the kitsune spirit from her." Chibiterasu said.

"Yeah, before she was possessed, Rao was considered one of the most powerful mikos. She was very close to Queen Himiko, who I dare say had even more of an influence on the people than the emperor did."

"Well, isn't that mostly because the emperor was really sick back then?" the mermaid girl asked. Apparently, even those from the dragon palace had heard of the goings on of the upper world.

"To be technically accurate, he was possessed by a demon. But, yeah." Chibi corrected.

"Man, there sure were a lot of people getting possessed back then…" Kuni muttered.

"The past sounds like it was very interesting."

"Mhmm." Chibi agreed. Things were about to settle down, and they were all about to sleep, until Chibi had an epiphany. "I've got it!" He yelled, suddenly getting to his feet and startling the others.

"What is it, Mutt?"

"Well, Manpuku is from the past, right?"

"Yeah, but he's from quite a bit further in the past. About a hundred years to be exact. What's your point?" Kagu asked.

"When I was with my mom on the celestial plain, she told me stories about her adventures in Japan."

"…Go on. We're listening." Kagu said.

"Well, one of the stories she told me, was about the Spirit Gate, in the Consuming forest. Supposedly, it can take people back in time by a hundred years. When I went back in time, I traveled through a portal, but the gate works in much the same way. If we use the gate, then we can go and bring Manpuku on the quest with us."

"That's a great idea, Mutt! Let's do it!"

"No way." Kagu said.

"Awwwww…Why?" Chibi whined.

"Because, it's very dangerous to travel through time. We might create a paradox! For example, what if your mother sees you, when she had no previous memory of it? That would be bad." She said, like a snob that knew best.

"You know what, Kagu? You're really no fun at all." Chibi complained. Kagu shot the pup an irritated glare.

"Well, all in favor?" Kuni asked, raising his hand into the air. Nanami followed the gesture, as well as an eager Chibiterasu. Kagu sighed.

"Fine, we'll go get Manpuku." She agreed. "After a good night of sleep." Kagu fell back onto a bed of leaves that she was currently using in substitute for a bed. The others soon followed her example, and left Chibi to put out the fire. He looked for a body of water to draw from, and was about to use Nanami's hair when remembered that he was out of ink. How could he put out fire without using the Celestial brush? The concept of kicking dirt over the flames completely eluded him. He briefly left the group in search of some source of ink. He wondered just far enough that he entered a place in the forest that he could look up into the sky through the trees. He was awestruck by the magnificence of the many constellations hanging above the earth. He recalled the gods of each one, and how they were well acquainted back home. Taking a moment to admire it all, he forgot the need to retrieve ink.

Suddenly, he saw a star streak across the sky, and spiral down to the earth. Chibi could see the star so clearly, he would have sworn that he could perceive a humanoid figure within it. He was even sure that the star fell not so far away. Instantly, Chibi ran back to the opening in the trees where his friends were sleeping.

"Kuni! Kagu! Nanami! Wake up!" Chibi yelled urgently. Kagu groaned and sat up.

"What is it, boy?" Kuni asked, being slightly less irritated that he was woken.

"I saw a star fall! We need to get over there!" Chibi yelled.

"All this for a star? It doesn't sound like it's worth it." Kagu mumbled.

"I've heard that falling stars are magic to anyone who finds them. Let's go!" Nanami said, getting up quickly. Chibi shot off in the direction of the star as soon as she'd given her approval. Reluctantly, Kuni, and Kagu followed as the excited boy lead them up to North Ryoshima Coast. In the dark, it was difficult to navigate with only the stars and moon to light the path. Chibi's white Kimono made it a bit easier to follow him in the dark, but only if they all could keep up. They ran out of breath before they could follow Chibiterasu onto the Watcher's Cape, where a bright celestial light was marking the place the star fell. Chibi didn't wait for his friends to make it up. They'd find a way to the top eventually, and Chibi was too impatient to wait for them.

He walked across the long grass that covered the overgrown ruins, and approached the foreign glow, lead by nothing more than curiosity. The object he was certain was a human sort of being, burned with a heatless blue flame that all stars were made of. As the overpowering light faded, the color of the person's clothes became visible. Some pink or red shirt, and purple pants. It was the incredibly blond hair, and stilt sandals that caught Chibi's attention at once. Before he could say how happy he was to see his old friend, the figure sat up, unharmed from the impact, and looked at Chibiterasu.

"Hey, dude. What's up?"


End file.
